Pneumatically operated pressing machines



Sept. 11, 1956 T. B. WALKER 2,762,142

PNEUMATICALLY OPERATED PRESSING MACHINES Filed March 12,. 1952 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 WALKER Sept- 1 1956 T. B. WALKER PNEUMATICALLY OPERATED PRESSING MACHINES 4 sheets-sheet 2 Filed March 12, 1952 FIG 4 Sept. 11, 1956 T. B. WALKER PNEUMATICALLY OPERATED PRESSING MACHINES 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed March 12, 1952 INVENTOl-P THOMAS BRADLEY WALKER PNEUIVIATICALLY OPERATED PRESSIN G MACHINES Thomas Bradley Walker, Kendal, England Application March 12, 1952, Serial N 0. 276,120 9 Claims. (Cl. 3841) This invention relates to improvements in the control of pneumatically operated garment pressing machines such as used in clothing factories, laundries, valeting services and hosiery factories, of the kind having a stationary buck on which the work is placed and a moveable head mounted on a pivoted head lever which applies the required pressure to the work.

in such machines it is desirable that the movement of the head and the pressure applied to the garment shall be under the complete control of the operator, and the object of the present invention is an arrangement for giving such complete control.

According to the invention air under pressure is supplied to one or other end of a pneumatic cylinder, which operates the head to cause the latter to open or close, by a valve or valves which is/are manually operated by a lever and moved in either direction from a neutral position depending on whether the head is to be opened or closed, the movement of the head resulting from the manual operation of the valve control lever causing the valve or valves to return to a neutral position, the distance which the head will move before the valve again assumes a neutral position depending on the distance through which the valve control lever has been manually displaced, thus for every'position of the valve control lever there is a corresponding position of the head lever in which the valve is in its neutral position and any movement of the control lever is immediately copied by the head lever.

The copying movement of the head lever may be achieved by means of suitable compensating gear.

The invention is illustrated in and will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

In these drawings:

Fig. l is a diagrammatic view illustrating one arrangement of the invention.

i 2 is a diagrammatic view illustrating a further arrangement of the invention.

Fig. 3 is a diagrammatic view illustrating a third arrangement of the invention in which the manual control of the valve or valves is carried on a stationary part of the machine.

Figs. 4 and 5 show a longitudinal and a transverse section respectively of a suitable valve for use with the invention.

Fig. 6 is a diagrammatic perspective view showing a control requiring the use of both hands of the operator to bring the head into pressing contact with the buck.

Figs. 7 and 8 are a side elevation and plan respectively of a constructional form of the pivoted head lever of a pressing machine and the controls and correcting gear operating the air supply valve.

Figs. 9 and 10 are a front elevation and side elevation respectively of a pressing machine embodying the head lever and controls shown in Figs. 7 and 8.

In all the constructions shown in the drawings the pressing head E co-operating with the stationary buck S is carried by the pressing head lever E fulcrumed at nited States Patent 0 E on the stationary frame Q of the machine, the pressing head lever being operated by the pneumatic cylinder R which is connected to lever E at r as shown in Fig. 10. The lever E is counterweighted at W in the usual way.

In the arrangement shown diagrammatically in Fig. l a lever A is pivotally mounted at a on a fulcrum attached to the head lever E and its end a pivotally connected to a link B at a point substantially at the mid position of the link B. The end 11 of the link B is pivotally connected to a radius link C. The end c of the link C is pivotally connected to a fulcrum fixed t0 the stationary frame Q of the pressing machine. The end b of the link B is connected to a rod D which passes through a bridge a which is rigidly flared to or forms part of the head lever E and can slide therein, stops d and d being provided on the sliding rod D. The links are spring loaded by the spring G the end g of which is rigidly attached to the bridge e of the head lever E and other end g is attached to the end of extension of the lever A to hold the stop d normally against the bridge e This position of the stop d corresponds with the press in the open position the lever A being in the neutral position as shown in full lines. The end a of the lever A is connected to a valve or valves, shown diagrammatically at T and indicated by link t controlling the distribution of air under pressure to the operating cylinder R of the machine.

As already stated the end a of the lever A is connected to a valve or valves distributing air to the pressure cylinder R. This valve may be of the slide type such as used to distribute steam in a double acting steam engine. It is preferred however that it should be of the type having an oscillatory rotating motion in which case it can conveniently be coincident with fulcrum a of lever A.

A suitable valve of this type is shown at Figs. 4 and 5. The lever A is ri idly mounted at k on spindle K which is rotatably mounted in bushes k fitted in a valve cover k leakage of air past the spindle K being prevented by a seal k A washer k fitted in a recess 1: in the cover k takes lateral thrust due to air pressure in the valve body 1: The valve k is a sliding fit on the rectangular end k of the spindle K. The valve body 7: is fitted with bush 1: in which are ports k coinciding with ports k and k in the valve body k The ports k are connected by a suitable flexible pipe to appropriate ends of the pressure cylinder R whilst the port it is an exfrom the ports k haust port. Air under pressure is admitted to the valve chamber through the port k in the valve body k and the port k in the bush k When the valve k is in the central or neutral position air pressure is cut off and air pressure at each end of the pressure cylinder is in equilibrium. Movement of the valve k from the neutral position admits air to one or other end of the pressure cylinder whilst the opposite end of the cylinder is opened to exhaust through the port it.

If the rod D is moved by means of a manually controlled lever fixed to and moving with the head lever E the lever A is moved anti-clockwise from normal position thereby admitting air to the control cylinder R which causes the head E to move towards the closed position i. e. the position shown in dotted lines. This downward movement of the head however will displace the radius link C which will return the lever A to its normal position by its connection to the end b of the link B. The distance through which the head will move before the lever A is Patented Sept. 11,.1956.

in which the press head assumes equilibrium is therefore sensitively under the control of' the operator.

Fig. 2 shows an alternative arrangement of the compensating (or correcting gear) which causes the valve controlling the admission of air into, the cylinder R to follow the-movement of the head lever A. In this arrangement theradius link C is replaced by a cam F of suitable contour which is secured to the frame Q of the machine. A roller I rotatably mounted on the end [7 of the lever B is held in contact with the cam F by the spring G.

If it is desired to have the manual control in a stationaryv position on the machine instead of moving with the head lever B, the displacement of the lever A can be obtained by displacing the cam F by manual means and.

such an arrangement is shown in Fig. 3. In this arrangement the cam F is pivotally supported on a fulcrum f rigid with the stationary frame Q of the machine. The cam lever is extended to form a connection at f to which a control rod H is connected. to. a manual control in a convenient position for the operator. When the cam F is moved manually to a'position such as shown in broken,

lines the lever A is displaced anti-clockwise to distribute air to the appropriate end of the pressure cylinder to cause the head E to approach the fixed buck of the machine. Any movement of the head lever B will be corrected by position of the roller J on the cam F as previously described.

If it is desired that from consideration of safety the operator should be compelled to use two hands before pressure is exerted between the head E and the buck S the link B is operated manually by duplicated controls shown at Fig, 6 where the control rod D is duplicated. In this construction the ends d of the rods D are pivotally connected to ends of a link M and substantially the middle of the link M is pivotally connected to the link B at its end 12 The stops d on the control rods D are so positioned that when one rod only is operated the appropriate stop d abuts against the bridge e of the head lever E displacing the end b of the link B a distance Y which causes the press head E to move to a position adjacent to the buck but in equilibrium so that no pressure is exerted between the head and the buck. The displacement Y of the rod B cannot be increased unless the operator uses his second hand to operate the second rod D which will give a further displacement y to operatethe valve and bring the head into pressure contact with the buck.

Figs. 7 and 8 are an elevation and plan respectively of the complete assembly of the control gear as applied to the press shown in front and side elevation in Figs. 9 and 10. In these figures the same reference letters are employed as have been employed in, the diagrammatic figures already described with additional letters for parts not previously described.

In this complete assembly springs N are provided to maintain the stops d on the rods D in abutment with the bridge e of head lever E so that control levers are normally held in position corresponding to open position of head. To cause the head E to approach the buck stops d are manually displaced by the operator, the amount which each stop d can be displaced being limited by the corresponding stop d The rods D are displaced by the operating handles D carried by the head lever E over the front of the top of the head E each handle, D being connected to the corresponding rod by a pivoted twoarmed lever d Each stopd is combined with a spring case d and the. position of the stops d can be adjusted and locked by locknuts d so that, whenoperator uses one hand only to bring one stop :2 to abut against the bridge 'e the head E is brought to rest adjacent to buck without exertingpressure thereon. Full pressure can only he obtained between head and buck by operator using the other hand to displace the second rod D to bring both stops, d simul-. taneously in abutment with the bridge e In certain manipulations of the work to be pressed it is desirable that the operator should have both hands free to arrange work on buck during the time head is being brought to a position adjacent to the buck. To allow of this operation being performed with safety to the operator the two methods of correcting the motion of the head i. e. by radius rod C and by the, cam F and roller J are both used and combined in the assembly shown in Figs. 7 to 10. Thecam F'is pivotally attached to the frame at the fulcrum f and the position of the-cam F is controlled by a foot pedal H attached by linkage h to the rod H, the shape of the cam F being such that the head E is brought adjacent to buck S without exerting pressure thereon. The final pressure can only be obtained by the operator using both hands to operate the handles D which move the control rods D.

It is sometimes desirable that the head should be locked in pressure contact with the buck. For this purpose a pin a is fitted in an extension of the lever A- which will engage with a latch L pivotally mounted at L a counterweight L holding the latch L in sliding contact with the pin a The pin a engages with latch L when the lever A is displaced by the rods D to the position to bring the head E in pressure contact with buck S. The latch L can be disengaged from the pin a by a foot pedal attached by linkage to a rocking lever P at p What I claim is:

1. A pneumatically operated pressing machine of the kind referred to comprising the combination with a pressing head, a pivoted lever carrying the pressing head,

and a buck, of a pneumatic cylinder operating the pivoted lever to open and close the head, a manually operated valve to control the supply of air to the cylinder;

which valve can be moved in either direction from a neutral position depending on whether the head is to be opened or closed, levermeans operatively engaging said valve for operating the same, said lever means being mounted on and moving with the pivoted lever carrying the head and means operated by the movement of the pivoted lever carrying the head for automatically returning the said valve to the neutral position on, movement of the pivoted: lever, the distance which the head will move before the valve again assumesa neutral position depending on the distance through which the valve operating lever means has been manually displaced, thus for every position of the valve operating lever means there is a, corresponding. position of the pivoted lever in which the valve is in its neutral position and any movement of the valve operating. lever means is, immediately copied by the pivoted lever carrying the head.

2. A pneumatically operated pressing machine as in claim 1 wherein the means for causing the valve to return to the neutral position on movement of the head consists of a radius link affixed at one end to a stationary part of the machine, and at the other end to the lever operating the valve.

3. A pneumatically operated pressing machine as in claim 1 wherein the means for causing the valve to return to the neutral position on movement of the head consists of a. link pivoted on the lever carrying the head and connected; to the lever operating the valve, a roller carried by said link, a cam surface secured to a stationary partof the machine and co-acting with said roller and means for holding the said roller in contact with the cam surface.

4. A pneumatically operated pressing machine as in claim 1 wherein the means for causing the valve to return to the neutral position on movement of the head consists of a link pivoted on the lever carrying the head and connected to the lever operating the valve, a roller carried by said link, a cam surface pivotally mounted on a stationary part of the machine and co-acting with said roller, means for holding the said roller in contact with the cam surface and manually operated means for varying the position of the cam about its pivot.

5. A pneumatically operated pressing machine of the kind referred to comprising the combination with a pressing head, a pivoted lever carrying the pressing head, and a buck, a pneumatic cylinder operating the pivoted lever to open and close the head, a manually operated valve to control the supply of air to the cylinder, which valve can be moved in either direction from a neutral position depending on whether the head is to be opened or closed, two manual control means operatively connected through lever means to said valve for operating said valve, said lever means operatively engaging said valve for operating the same, said lever means being mounted on and moving with the pivoted lever carrying the head for automatically returning said valve to the neutral position on movement of the pivoted lever, the distance which the head will move before the valve again assumes a neutral position depending on the distance through which the manual valve control means have been manually displaced, thus for every position of the manual valve control means there is a corresponding position of the pivoted lever in which the valve is in its neutral position and any movement of the manual control means is immediately copied by the head lever, and means connecting the two manual control means whereby it is necessary for the operator to use both hands before the valve can be displaced sufliciently from the neutral position to bring the head into pressing contact with the buck.

6. A pneumatically operated pressing machine as in claim comprising the combination with each of the two manual controls of a sliding rod, each sliding rod having a limited longitudinal sliding movement in either direction, a pivoted link connecting together the ends 6 v of the sliding rods, and means connecting the approximate middle of the link to a lever which operates the valve.

7. A pneumatically operated pressing machine as in claim 1 wherein the means for causing the valve to return to the neutral position on movement of the head consists of a link pivoted on the lever carrying the head and connected to the lever operating the valve, a roller carried by said link, a cam surface pivotally mounted on a stationary part of the machine and co-acting with said roller, means for holding the said roller in contact with the cam surface and pedal means for operating the valve to bring the head adjacent to but not in pressure contact with the buck, the final movement of the valve to cause the head to be brought into pressing contact with the buck being controlled by a control carried on the pivoted lever.

8. A pneumatically operated pressing machine as in claim 1 having in combination therewith means for holding the head in the pressing position and manually operated means for releasing the head.

9. A pneumatically operated pressing machine as in claim 1 having in combination therewith means for holding the head in the pressing position and a foot pedal for releasing the head.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,667,756 Waream et a1. May 1, 1928 2,231,804 Forse Feb. 11, 1941 2,555,759 Osborn June 5, 1951 

